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Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was in attendance as Germany romped to a 6-0 win over Slovakia to book its place at the World Cup without the need for a play-off, with Florian Wirtz assisting twice.
The Liverpool playmaker was a strong performer in Leipzig, with Germany needing to avoid defeat to progress as group winners. Julian Nagelsmann said before the game that nerves were only natural for such an important fixture, but he needn't have worried.
Nick Woltemade opened the scoring on 18 minutes, with Serge Gnabry doubling the lead shortly after. Wirtz set up Leroy Sane twice before half-time, with Germany going in 4-0 up at the break.
Ridle Baku and then the 19-year-old wonderkid Assan Ouedraogo added goals five and six, with Germany cruising to a win. That should do Wirtz's confidence no harm as he returns to Liverpool ahead of the weekend visit of Nottingham Forest.
In its player ratings, Eurosport said Wirtz "seemed a bit hesitant in some situations at the start". However, he "then set up both of Sane's goals with great vision".
The Liverpool man was awarded a 2.0 rating, with the German system going from 1.0 (best) to 6.0 (worst). Only the "technically superb" Sane was given a higher number, with Wirtz's "top form" praised.
Elsewhere, Kicker noted that Wirtz "first sent Sane through beautifully from his own half, who finished clinically". Then, he "skillfully won the ball back on the left wing and subsequently set up Sane for his second goal to make it 4-0."
Most of its analysis centered around the return to form of Sane, but it also noted that Nagelsmann said his team "worked like a dog" and was thoroughly deserving of such an emphatic victory.
Sport1 added that he was "brimming with enthusiasm" and a "creative force in the German attack".
And German magazine Web.de had a slightly harsher take on Wirtz. "The super talent fails to score for the fourth consecutive match," it said. "However, he does provide two assists."
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"We knew that if we played close to our top level, we would win," Joshua Kimmich said. "The coach prepared us superbly, set us up perfectly, and gave us some really good words.
"It was a very, very strong game. Everyone wanted to make a statement today; everyone knew exactly what was at stake."
"If we play like we did today, we're a very good team," center-back Nico Schlotterbeck added. "When the guys who are still good for us, the ones who are injured, come back, then I think we'll have a very good World Cup.
"The first step has been taken, and at the World Cup, the next steps will follow. If we play like we did today, it doesn't matter whether we play the 46th-ranked team in the world or the number one. Then we can beat any opponent. We're still Germany."
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